PUBLIC ORDER ACT PRO MAX IS HERE
There is something deeply worrying about the direction our democracy is taking.
Zambians were promised freedom. We were promised that the infamous colonial-era Public Order Act would either be repealed or significantly reformed because it had become a tool used to suppress citizens, opposition voices, and ordinary gatherings.
Today, however, what are we seeing?
A proposed Public Gatherings Bill that now seeks to require any public gathering of three or more people to notify the police three days before meeting.
Three people.
Pause and think about that carefully.
At what point do citizens stop being free people and start becoming subjects who must seek permission to interact?
What makes this even more concerning is the long list of exemptions conveniently protecting those already in power. The President, Vice-President, Ministers, MPs, mayors, councillors, public officers and State institutions are largely protected from the restrictions while ordinary citizens, activists and political opponents carry the burden of compliance.
That is not equality before the law.
A democracy cannot survive when laws appear designed for the convenience of the ruling class while tightening control over everyone else.
Yes, every country needs public order. No reasonable person supports violence, lawlessness or chaos. But public order must never become an excuse to quietly shrink constitutional freedoms.
The timing of this Bill also raises serious questions.
Why the rush?
Why introduce such a sensitive law at a time when Parliament is nearing dissolution and political tensions are already high?
More worrying is that some of the loudest voices pushing these laws are MPs whose own political conduct has become questionable after crossing the floor to join the ruling party. Many citizens now feel Parliament is no longer acting as an independent institution of oversight, but rather as a conveyor belt for executive interests.
This is dangerous for democracy.
Laws affecting freedom of assembly, political participation and civic rights should never be rushed through Parliament. Such laws require wide consultations with churches, civil society, students, trade unions, lawyers, political parties and ordinary citizens.
Sadly, what many Zambians are seeing is not the removal of the Public Order Act, but the arrival of what appears to be “Public Order Act Pro Max.”
President Hakainde Hichilema came into office on the promise of expanding democratic space, not shrinking it.
If this law is truly about public safety, then let the people be fully consulted first. Let Parliament slow down and allow meaningful national debate instead of bulldozing legislation that directly touches on constitutional freedoms.
Because history has taught us something important:
The laws you create today against your opponents may tomorrow be used against you.
And once freedoms are surrendered in silence, recovering them becomes far more difficult.
Simon Mulenga Mwila – Aspiring Mayor of Lusaka.(DBA Student, MBA, LLM, LLB, Legal Practitioner, Commissioner for Oaths, Notary Public)